How has the season flown by so quickly? This weekend, the series heads to Miami to crown a champion. It’s been a roller coaster of a season for Kyle Busch and his #18 team, including a swap of the entire over-the-wall pit crew as the Chase began. And yet, he finds himself in the Championship 4 for the third time in as many years, the only driver to have managed the feat in this elimination-style format.

Some stats heading into this weekend’s race:

Kyle’s highest Homestead start: Third, twice, 2006 and 2015

Kyle’s highest Homestead finish: Winner, once, 2015

Average Homestead start: 12.8

Average Homestead finish: 19.8

Kyle won the race to bring home his first Cup series championship in 2015. He came up short last year and finished third in the standings. He goes into the battle for Cup #2 starting from the third position Sunday afternoon, the same spot he started from when he brought home the Cup two years ago. Can Rowdy do it again and bring home his second Cup championship in three years? Make sure you tune in Sunday to find out. No matter what, a champion *will* be crowned.

One last trip out west, one last chance for the playoff contenders not already locked in to punch their ticket into the Championship 4 at Homestead. Three of the four spots were already claimed by Kyle Busch (Martinsville), Kevin Harvick (Texas) and Martin Truex Jr (points). For Kyle, the Can-Am 500 in Phoenix represented one more opportunity to win and build momentum before the race that will decide it all. For the 5 drivers fighting over the final spot, the Can-Am 500 would be their final battle. Who would advance?

The first stage of the race was largely uneventful. Kyle hung around inside the top ten the whole time, even while he fought an ill-handling M&M’s Caramel Camry. Up front, the #21 of Ryan Blaney faded after about the first 10-15 laps, leaving the #24 of Chase Elliott and the #11 of Denny Hamlin fighting each other for the lead most of the remaining laps. Around lap 40, Kyle told crew chief Adam Stevens “I’ve got skis as front tires on this thing! Does not turn, will not load.” Adam responded with his usual “10-4” and told Kyle they’d get him fixed up. As the laps wound down in stage 1, Kyle found himself riding in the sixth spot, in spite of the way his car was handling. The #42 of Kyle Larson, who had been holding steady near the front of the field, finally got out front to take the lead with just 7 laps to go in the stage and took the first stage points of the day. Rowdy settled for sixth and began talking with Adam about adjustments for his #18 machine.

The top 10 at the end of Stage 1 were: Larson, Hamlin, Elliott, the #4 of Kevin Harvick, the #20 of Matt Kenseth, Kyle, the #77 of Erik Jones, the #78 of Martin Truex Jr., the #31 of Ryan Newman, and the #48 of Jimmie Johnson.

The leaders all came to pit road during the stage break, with Kyle coming to the attention of his #18 crew for four fresh tires, fuel, and adjustments. His crew got him off pit road quickly, gaining him two spots to put him in the fourth position for the start of green flag racing in Stage 2. The green flag flew over Stage 2 on lap 83 and Kyle shot to second as Hamlin took off with the lead. Around lap 95, Kyle had returned to the fourth spot and reported that his Joe Gibbs Racing Camry was handling better but still needed some more work.

The second stage would not be as uneventful as the first. On lap 103, spotter Tony Hirschman told Kyle that the 42 (Larson) appeared to be blowing up. “He’s down a cylinder, at least.” Kyle grabbed the third spot as Larson’s struggles mounted quickly. Larson made it off the track safely without causing a caution. The day’s first non-stage break caution flew on lap 149, just one lap shy of the scheduled end of Stage 2, as Jimmie Johnson’s #48 machine found the wall, ending his quest for an eighth championship, at least in 2017. Denny Hamlin took the stage win and Kyle finished the stage in fifth.

The top 10 at the end of Stage 2 were: Hamlin, Kenseth, Jones, Truex, Kyle, Harvick, the #1 of Jamie McMurray, Newman, Elliott, and the #14 of Clint Bowyer.

The leaders once again hit pit road at the stage break for their second round of scheduled pit stops. Kyle wanted more adjustments and his crew obliged him. They worked quickly, once again gaining him two spots on pit road. He started the final stage from the third spot on lap 158. Kyle started falling back almost as soon as the field took the green. Around lap 190, he confirmed that he was once again fighting the handling on his race car. He continued losing positions and, when the event’s second non-stage caution flew on lap 229 for the #6 of Trevor Bayne finding the wall in turn 4, Kyle was tenth. Kyle welcomed the chance this caution gave his team to work on the handling of his #18 M&M’s Caramel machine. He brought his Joe Gibbs Racing Camry to pit road for four fresh tires, fuel, and more adjustments.

The restart came on lap 235 and found Kyle in the ninth position. Cautions tend to breed cautions, however, and on lap 238, the yellow flew once again, this time for debris in turn 2. Kyle was in the eleventh spot and reported to Adam that he had no brakes. Adam thought it could be because Kyle wasn’t using much brake and they were too cold. They discussed it under caution, with Adam telling Kyle it was obviously too soon to come back to pit road. The field got back underway on lap 243 and Kyle made it into the tenth spot by lap 250. On lap 251, the #37 of Chris Buescher and the #19 of Daniel Suarez made contact in turn 3, with Buescher getting the worst of it and bringing out the day’s fourth non-stage caution. Adam called Kyle to pit road under this caution. His trip was delayed, however, by a fire in the SAFER barrier. NASCAR displayed the red flag and the communication over Kyle’s radio was interesting. Kyle started the conversation with “I think a styrofoam block *in* the SAFER barrier’s on fire?!?” (Kyle sounded incredulous.) Spotter Tony’s calm, nonchalant reply? “Yep, that’d be correct.”

The red flag was a brief one, with total time under red just 5 minutes and 3 seconds. As soon as NASCAR opened pit road, Kyle and some of the other leaders, but not all, pitted. Kyle got four more fresh Goodyear tires, fuel, and more sorely needed adjustments. He returned to the track for the lap 258 restart in the 14th position, behind those leaders that had opted to stay out. Cautions once again bred cautions, as the #72 of Cole Whitt wrecked in turn 3 on lap 261. Kyle was 16th and Adam told him to stay out. The caution was a quick one, with the restart coming on lap 265. After a battle that lasted several laps, Hamlin and Elliott got together on lap 275, with Hamlin getting the short end of the deal and bringing the caution out again. Adam opted to bring Kyle back down pit road from the 15th position for another fresh set of tires. Kyle restarted from the 13th spot on lap 281, with just 31 laps remaining in the race. Kyle climbed toward the front quickly, getting as high as sixth on lap 290 before settling back in seventh for the remainder of the race.

Meanwhile, the battle for the lead up front was an intense battle, as Chase Elliott led the way while Matt Kenseth furiously gave chase and began reeling in the young gun. The laps wound down quickly but Kenseth’s car loomed ever larger in Elliott’s rear view mirror. Elliott had to win to advance to the Championship 4. On lap 302, Kenseth finally ran down the youngster from Dawsonville, though, and grabbed the lead. They continued to battle for a few more laps until Kenseth finally pulled clear. The checkers flew on lap 312 for Matt Kenseth, possibly his last win in the NASCAR Cup Series.

Congratulations to teammate Matt Kenseth and the entire #20 Joe Gibbs Racing team on the victory. Well done, gentlemen.

After a tumultuous weekend in Texas that (most likely) has Rowdy thanking his lucky stars he’s already locked into the Championship 4 at Homestead next weekend, the series heads out west one last time to the 1-mile battleground known as Phoenix Raceway.

Kyle Busch suffered two flat tires during the race last weekend, relegating him to finishing among the lapped cars as Stewart-Haas driver Kevin Harvick took the win to punch his own ticket to Homestead. The season is winding down quickly, with just two races remaining. Kyle has one fall race win to his credit here, but that was a long time ago. He would love to add a second fall Phoenix win this weekend.

Some stats heading into this weekend’s race:

Kyle’s highest Phoenix II start: Pole, once, 2012

Kyle’s highest Phoenix II finish: Winner, once, 2005

Average Phoenix II start: 13.7

Average Phoenix II finish: 13.8

Average overall Phoenix start: 11.6

Average overall Phoenix finish: 12.5

Qualifying for this weekend’s race took place Friday evening. Kyle is hoping to find an oasis of victory in this desert oval as he looks to build one last wave of momentum to propel him to his second Cup series championship. He’ll start his search from the eighth position Sunday afternoon. Will he find his oasis or will it just be a cruel mirage?

This weekend, the series makes its return to Texas Motor Speedway for the AAA Texas 500, the second race in the Round of 8. While Kyle Busch has won twice in the spring events here, he has yet to conquer the fall race. But, with his win last week at Martinsville, Kyle is already locked into the Championship 4 at Homestead so points for him no longer matter. It goes without saying, though, that he would love to check off a win in the fall race here.

Some stats heading into this weekend’s race:

Kyle’s highest Texas II start: Third, twice, 2012 and 2015

Kyle’s highest Texas II finish: Third, twice, 2012 and 2014

Average Texas II start: 14.45

Average Texas II finish: 11.45

Average overall Texas start: 15.2

Average overall Texas finish: 11.7

Qualifying for this weekend’s race will take place Friday evening. Just like Kyle has never notched a fall win here, Kyle has also never held the pole in the fall. Tune in Friday to find out where he’ll start and Sunday to find out if he’ll be sporting a brand new cowboy hat once the checkers fly. After this weekend, two races remain, then a Champion will be crowned.

Last time the series visited the paperclip that is Martinsville Speedway, Kyle Busch was still searching for his first win of the season. He didn’t find it there, though he did come very close in scoring a runner-up finish. He would have to wait to add another grandfather clock to his collection. One long summer later, Kyle and the rest of the NASCAR Monster Energy Series Cup drivers returned to Martinsville this weekend for the first race in the Round of 8. Would someone (preferably Kyle) be punching their ticket to Homestead when the checkers flew or would a driver not in the playoffs sneak in and play spoiler? It’s time to take a look back at the First Data 500.

Qualifying and the race both took place on the same day this time around. Kyle had been strong in practice and looked to grab a good starting spot for the 500-lap battle to follow. He easily advanced out of the first round but faltered in round 2, leaving him with a 14th starting position for the green flag. The #22 of Team Penske’s Joey Logano was quickest and would lead the field to the green flag later in the afternoon. Kyle’s first and only Cup win at this track came last spring. A win this time around would lock him into the Championship 4 at Homestead in just a few short weeks. Starting back in the pack, he had some work to do to get there.

Green flag in the air! Logano led the way and Kyle began his climb through the field. Ten laps in, Kyle had his M&M’s Halloween Toyota up to eleventh and he was knocking on the door of the top ten. Two laps later, that door opened as Kyle grabbed the tenth spot. Over the next several laps, Kyle worked his way a bit further forward and was riding in the eighth position when the first caution flew on lap 36 for a wreck in turn 2 involving the #13 of Ty Dillon and the #17 of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. There had been some rain in Martinsville overnight that led NASCAR to schedule a competition caution for lap 45. However, with the wreck occurring so close to that scheduled caution, NASCAR made the call to have this first caution period count as the competition yellow.

With this being the competition yellow, crew chief Adam Stevens called Kyle to pit road for his first stop of the night. Four tires, a full tank of fuel, and a small wedge adjustment later, Kyle was back out on the race track in third. His crew gained him 5 positions with their quick work. The restart came on lap 44 and Kyle fell to fourth as the #22 machine of Logano continued to lead the way, relinquishing that lead to his teammate Brad Keselowski around lap 50. When the afternoon’s second caution flew for a spin by the #38 of David Ragan on lap 61, Kyle was still in that fourth spot. Adam told him they would be staying out under this caution. The vast majority of the lead lap cars did the same.

The green flag went back in the air on lap 68 and Kyle got back to work. It took him less than two laps to get back into the third position. He could see the leader and he wanted a piece of that action. He held the third spot down for the next several laps but had fallen back to fourth again when the caution flew for the third time on lap 88 for a spin by AJ Allmendinger in his #47 machine. Adam once again called Kyle to pit road. The pit crew did their job, giving Kyle four fresh Goodyear tires and a full tank of fuel, sending him off pit road ahead of the rest who had pitted. Not all the leaders came in, however, so Kyle lined up for the restart on lap 93 in the ninth position. It had been 80 laps since Kyle rode that deep in the pack. Kyle wasted no time moving past the cars with older tires in front of him. By lap 100, he was already up to fifth. His steady climb toward the front continued as the laps of Stage 1 wound down. When the green checkers flew at the end of Stage 1 on lap 130, Kyle found himself in second place behind stage winner Brad Keselowski.

The top 10 at the end of Stage 1 were: Keselowski, Kyle, Logano, the #48 of Jimmie Johnson, the #78 of Martin Truex Jr., the #24 of Chase Elliott, the #21 of Ryan Blaney, the #5 of Kasey Kahne, the #3 of Austin Dillon, and the #11 of Denny Hamlin.

Under the stage break caution, Kyle brought his M&M’s Halloween Camry back down pit road for more fresh tires, some more Sunoco Racing fuel, and some more adjustments. When Adam asked what he needed here, Kyle commented that he was still fighting a tight condition and he was lacking front grip. One quick pit stop later had Kyle leaving pit road with the lead, his first of the event.

Stage 2 got underway with green flag conditions on lap 139. Kyle took off with his newly acquired first place track position and worked to leave the rest of the field in his proverbial dust. The race took on a long green flag run feel as the laps ticked by. Kyle kept his lead out front with good work from spotter Tony Hirschman guiding him through the lapped traffic he encountered. By lap 200, there was no change up front. However, a hard-charging Keselowski was growing ever larger in Kyle’s rear view mirror. Kyle continued to work his way through traffic with Keselowski hot on his heels. The battle continued right up to the very last lap of Stage 2 when Keselowski finally snuck by Kyle to take the Stage 2 win on lap 260. Once again, Kyle finished the stage in second place behind that #2 Miller Lite machine.

The top 10 at the end of Stage 2 were: Keselowski, Kyle, Logano, Truex, Elliott, Blaney, the #4 of Kevin Harvick, the #20 of Matt Kenseth, the #14 of Clint Bowyer, and Johnson.

As the leaders prepared to come to pit road, Adam again asked Kyle how his car was and what he would need to start the final stage. Kyle reported that his #18 machine started out decent but the handling seemed to go away over the long run, so he was looking for some longevity. Kyle brought his M&M's Halloween Camry in for his stop. The crew once again did quick work, giving him fresh tires, fuel, and some adjustments, all while getting him out of there fast enough to maintain his lead.

The green flag went in the air for Stage 3 on lap 272. Kyle got a clean start and went to work on building his lead. By lap 285, the gap was large enough that spotter Tony reminded him Keselowski wasn’t being pressured and Kyle needed to “manage your stuff here”. Around lap 290, Adam Stevens noticed Kyle had picked up a piece of debris that was blocking one of his brake ducts. He told Tony, who then told Kyle to use one of the lapped cars to help remove it. It took a few tries but Kyle did finally manage to clear it off by lap 294.

The field saw the fourth non-stage related caution of the night on lap 303 when the #42 of Kyle Larson found the wall the hard way. Kyle still had the lead when the caution flew. He came to pit road with the rest of the leaders when it opened on lap 309 (clean up from Larson’s wreck took a while) for fresh tires and fuel. Kyle’s crew once again did solid work and helped him maintain his lead off pit road for the restart on lap 313. The caution flew again barely two laps later on lap 315 when the #77 of rookie Erik Jones went for a spin in turn 4. Since Kyle had just been on pit road, he stayed out under this caution.

The field took the green again on lap 321 and the battle for the lead heated up quickly. After a furious scramble over the first 5 laps, Chase Elliott emerged with the lead and Kyle had been shuffled back to fourth. As the field settled in, Kyle’s car had a tight look to it. This was confirmed around lap 350 when Kyle reported that the #18 was “way too tight, will not turn”. Lap 360 brought the night’s sixth caution for a spin by the #34 of Landon Cassill and the #38 of David Ragan in turn 2. Kyle welcomed the yellow, as it meant he could come down pit road and get some sorely needed adjustments. He followed the leaders down pit road, landed squarely in his pit stall, and the crew went to work. Four tires, fuel, and adjustments later, Kyle left pit road up two positions in second behind Keselowski for the lap 367 restart.

As the field got back underway, the #78 of Truex snuck by Kyle, dropping him to third. A couple of laps later, the #24 of Elliott also went by him. Kyle reported that he thought he had a left front tire rub. Spotter Tony looked at it and said that the left front looked fine but the left rear had the “Goodyear fuzzed off of it”. Kyle told the team his steering wheel was sticking, so something had to be rubbing. The team looked as closely as they could as he went by under green flag conditions, but could not see anything obvious. By lap 385, Kyle worked back up to and past the #78 of Truex to reclaim third position. Around lap 390, the #24 of Elliott got by the #2 of Keselowski for the lead. The race once again took on a long green flag run feel and the field settled in. On lap 455, Kyle finally finished reeling in Keselowski, passing him for the second spot. His timing couldn’t have been better, as the caution flag was once again displayed on lap 357 for the #66 of Carl Long in the wall in turn 2.

The leaders all came to pit road for what could be their final stop. Kyle lost two spots on this round of stops, lining up in fourth for the restart on lap 464. The #2 of Keselowski muscled his way back to the lead by lap 470 as Kyle appeared to be stuck in that fourth spot. Around lap 490, Kyle made contact with the #22 of Logano, leaving Logano with a massive tire rub. The tire finally gave way on lap 491 with just nine laps to go in the race and the caution flew yet again. Adam told him they would stay out under this caution unless Kyle had a problem. Most of the leaders did the same, so Kyle remained in fourth for the lap 496 restart.

The green flag was short lived, though, as the #11 of Hamlin got into the #24 of Elliott, sending him for a spin on lap 497 and bringing out the caution flag. As a result of that incident, Kyle found himself in the second position. The race pushed past the 500 scheduled laps under this caution. The finish would come fast and furious in the form of a two-lap overtime shootout. The restart came on lap 503. Hamlin had the lead and Kyle wanted it.

​It took almost every last inch of those final two laps, but Kyle got by Hamlin as the field came into turns 3 and 4 for the final time. Over Kyle’s radio, one order from Tony was repeated over and over down that front stretch. “Beat him to the line! Beat him to the line! Beat him to the line!” Checkered flag in the air! Kyle followed orders and beat Denny Hamlin in a drag race to the stripe as a huge wreck happened behind them. Elation rained down on the #18 radio channel. Adam’s words summed it up well. “I’m so damn happy, I could CRY, driver!” You and me both, Adam. You and me both. Tick tock, tick tock… Rowdy’s got another clock!

With Kyle’s first win in the fall race at Martinsville, he has locked himself into the Championship 4 at Homestead. Who will be the other three joining him? We have two more races to find out.

This weekend, the series returns to the famed Martinsville Speedway, known as the paperclip for its unique shape. The thing drivers want most from this track when they win? Its the grandfather clock trophy. Kyle Busch comes into this weekend having escaped the mayhem in Kansas with the solid top ten he needed to advance to the round of 8.

Kyle finally conquered the paperclip in the Cup series last spring and he would love to repeat that performance this weekend to punch his ticket to Homestead. Can Kyle bring home a second grandfather clock and lock himself into the finale? Tune in Sunday to find out!

After a disappointing 27th place finish as a result of the “big one” at Talladega, Kyle Busch comes into Kansas hoping to follow the yellow brick road to his second win in the “Land of Oz” to automatically advance him into the Round of 8. He’s in a hole and, while it’s not an absolute “must win” situation, he needs a solid finish here if he hopes to keep fighting for the Championship.

Some stats heading into this weekend:

Kyle’s highest Kansas start: Second, once – 2016 fall race

Kyle’s highest Kansas finish: Winner – once, 2016 spring race

Average Kansas II start: 14.85

Average Kansas II finish: 15.08

Average overall Kansas start: 13.7

Average overall Kansas finish: 17.7

For as long as Kyle has been in the Cup series, Kansas has been his Kryptonite. He often struggles here, although his stats since they added a second race in 2011 have seen significant improvement. The extra track time seems to have done Kyle some good, with an average overall start of 8.75 and an average overall finish of 14.17 outperforming his full career stats. He has started inside the top 10 and finished inside the top 5 in the last 5 races here, including his win last spring. He’ll need that kind of performance to move on in the playoffs, as he currently sits 7 points out of the eighth and final transfer spot.

Will Rowdy find redemption for the last two weeks in America’s heartland? Watch with me on Sunday afternoon and find out.

Kyle Busch leaves an eventful (and wreck-filled) weekend at Charlotte behind him, dusting the bad luck off those driving shoes as the series heads to the high banks of Talladega Superspeedway for the second race in the Round of 12.

Some stats heading into this weekend:

Kyle’s highest Talladega start: Fifth, once – 2008 spring race

Kyle’s highest Talladega finish: Winner – once, 2008 spring race

Average Talladega II start: 23.5

Average Talladega II finish: 21.42

Average overall Talladega start: 20.5

Average overall Talladega finish: 20.5

As evidenced by the statistics here, Kyle does not have a lot of good luck at this 2.66-mile long track, the longest oval on the NASCAR circuit. It’s high time he changes this. Could this be the weekend he finally notches another win in ‘Dega, his first in the fall race, to punch his ticket to the Round of 8? We’ll just have to watch and find out.

Dover, the home of Miles the Monster, has been kinder to Kyle Busch in the spring than in the fall. However, the #18 M&M’s Caramel team rolled into Miles' home turf hot off a win at the Magic Mile in Loudon. Could Kyle and crew pull off two in a row? Let's take a look back at the Apache Warrior 400.

Kyle qualified the #18 M&M’s Caramel Camry in the second position, having been edged out for the pole by the #78 of Martin Truex Jr. This was an encouraging start to the weekend. Once again, it was a TRD front row, with two Camries leading the field to the green flag on a beautiful Sunday afternoon. Shortly after the green flag flew, the #20 of Matt Kenseth got by Kyle, putting Kyle back in the third position. Twelve laps in, Kyle fell to fourth behind the #42 of Kyle Larson. By lap 15, Kyle had lost to more positions and reported to crew chief Adam Stevens that he was tight with the front and loose with the rear all the way through the turns. That would easily explain the quick loss of position on the race track.

As the run stretched into a long green flag run, the field started falling back to Kyle. After falling as far as ninth, Kyle started climbing back toward the front, taking eighth from the #19 of Daniel Suarez on lap 60. The #42 of Larson was leading the way, having taken the lead from pole-sitter Truex around lap 25. The first cycle of green flag pit stops began around lap 83. As the pit stop cycle continued, Kyle cycled up to the lead on lap 85. Caution flew on lap 87, just as Kyle was preparing to pit. The #33 of Jeffrey Earnhardt hit the sand barrels at the entrance to pit road, opening one of them up and creating a mess for anyone trying to come to the pits.

NASCAR displayed the red flag for clean up, with the red flag period lasting approximately 14 minutes. Once cleanup was complete, NASCAR brought the caution flag back out, leaving pit road closed the first time the field went by. Adam told Kyle to bring his Camry to pit road as soon as it opened. On the next lap, lap 88, Kyle led the field down pit road and brought his M&M’s Caramel Camry to the attention of his crew. The stop was a little slower than this OR would have liked to see but adjustments were being made in addition to just fresh tires and fuel.

The restart came on lap 92, with Kyle in the second position alongside new leader Brad Keselowski. Brad quickly pulled out to a good lead and Kyle would hold that second position until the end of stage one on lap 120.

Your top 10 at the end of Stage 1: Keselowski, Kyle, Truex, the #17 of Ricky Stenhouse Jr., the #10 of Danica Patrick, Larson, the #24 of Chase Elliott, the #4 of Kevin Harvick, the #38 of David Ragan, and the #11 of Denny Hamlin.

Kyle and the rest of the leaders came to pit road under the stage break caution. The #18 crew pulled off a solid stop, giving Kyle the lead for the restart on lap 128 to start the second stage. Kyle got away clean but it only took about a dozen laps before the #42 of Larson took the lead away on lap 141. By lap 155, Kyle had fallen to fourth, still fighting handling issues in his #18 machine. The second non-stage caution of the day flew on lap 166 for the #55 of Reed Sorenson blowing an engine. Adam called Kyle to pit road for four fresh tires and fuel. The crew did their work and Kyle went back out on the track in the fourth position, a one spot improvement over his position when the caution flew.

The restart came on lap 173. Larson immediately grabbed the lead from the #78 of Truex and Kyle remained in the fourth spot. He fell back to fifth by lap 180 but, on lap 200, Kyle reported that his car was “way better here”. On lap 206, Kyle returned to the fourth position, taking it from the #4 of Harvick. He would end the stage in that fourth position on lap 240.

Your top 10 at the end of Stage 2: Larson, Truex, Elliott, Kyle, the #48 of Jimmie Johnson, Hamlin, the #88 of Dale Earnhardt Jr., Keselowski, the #1 of Jamie McMurray, and the #14 of Clint Bowyer.

Once again, the leaders came to pit road for service during the stage break. Kyle got four more fresh Goodyear tires, fuel, and more adjustments. He left pit road in fourth, the same spot he held when he came to the pits. As the field ran more caution laps, race leader Larson failed to maintain speed behind the pace car. This dropped him back several positions and Kyle moved up to third for the restart on lap 249 to start the final stage. Kyle and Johnson traded the third spot back and forth over the next 50 laps, with Kyle finally holding third on lap 300.

The final round of green flag pit stops began around lap 318. Adam told Kyle that they were still several laps away from pitting. When Kyle finally came to pit road on lap 330, he pitted from the lead. Once the cycle of pit stops was completed, Kyle was back in the third position, as he had been prior to the start of the cycle. Kyle passed Truex for the second spot on lap 355. As the laps wound down, Kyle began to hunt for race leader Chase Elliott. There was what seemed to be an insurmountable gap between the two of them, with Kyle needing to outpace Elliott by at least a tenth of a second each lap in order to even catch up.

By lap 380, Kyle had cut the gap in half, dropping Elliott's lead to about 2 seconds. The laps continued to tick by and, with each passing lap, Rowdy got closer. White flag in the air! Kyle was all over the back bumper of that #24 machine as they roared out of turn 4 to start the final lap. He saw that win within his grasp if only he could make the pass. Just as they reached the line on lap 399, Kyle made his move, taking the lead from the young #24 driver. They battled hard through those last corners, with Kyle finally breaking away from Elliott in the final turn. Kyle raced toward the checkered flag, with Elliott in hot pursuit. Checkers in the air! Kyle flew by, taking his second straight win of the playoffs and the 5 critical playoff points that came with it. Adam came on the radio and said, “You're the MAN!” as Kyle burned down his tires on the front stretch in an amazing burnout.

Congratulations to the entire #18 team for a hard fought victory. Onward to the round of 12.

Kyle Busch heads into this weekend fresh off a win at the Magic Mile and ready to tangle with Miles for a shot at a second win in this first round of the playoffs.

Some stats heading into this weekend:

Kyle’s highest Dover start: Pole, once – this year, June race

Kyle’s highest Dover finish: Winner – twice, June 2008 and June 2010.

Average Dover II start: 10.92

Average Dover II finish: 13.25

Average overall Dover start: 10.0

Average overall Dover finish: 14.8

Kyle has a complicated relationship with Miles. While he’s had success in the spring races here, he has struggled in the fall events. He typically qualifies well, doing so once again for this weekend’s race. He was just edged out by the #78 of Martin Truex Jr. for the pole in Friday’s qualifying session.

The big headline for the weekend is that Dover marks the end of the Round of 16. While 16 drivers will go into Sunday’s race with a shot at the Championship, only 12 will leave Dover still in contention. Kyle and Truex have both guaranteed themselves a place in the Round of 12 with their respective wins. Who will be the other 10 to join them? We’ll just have to wait and see.

New Hampshire Motor Speedway, aka “The Magic Mile” played host to the second race of the “Round of 16” this past weekend. This was the final year for NHMS to host a fall race, as their second date has been given to Las Vegas Motor Speedway beginning in 2018. Coming into this weekend, Kyle Busch had never won the fall event here. Would he finally find the magic he needed to break through and grab a fall win in his last chance to pull it off? Let’s take a look back at the ISM Connect 300.

Kyle started the weekend strong, landing on the pole for the second week in a row. That gave him lane choice when the green flag flew Sunday afternoon. The outside line had been shown to be the stronger line in the weekend’s events leading into Sunday’s Cup race, so Kyle opted to start there. That choice was a good one, as he took off clean at the start and, by lap 10, was already out to about a 1-second lead over second place Ryan Blaney. By lap 20, the first car in his mirror had changed, as the #78 of Martin Truex Jr. took over the second position. Kyle had also caught the tail end of the field and was beginning to put cars a lap down.

Kyle continued to lead over the next 20 or so laps until the #78 finally caught him for the lead on lap 41. As has been the case much of the season, the #78 team was showing some serious speed once again. By lap 60, the #42 of Kyle Larson had caught Kyle and, five laps later, finally completed the pass to put Rowdy in third. There was no change in the top three for the remaining laps of the first stage. Kyle crossed the line at the end of stage 1 in that third spot behind Truex and Larson.

Top 10 at the end of Stage 1: Truex, Larson, Kyle, the #77 of Erik Jones, Blaney, the #20 of Matt Kenseth, the #2 of Brad Keselowski, the #48 of Jimmie Johnson, the #11 of Denny Hamlin, and the #4 of Kevin Harvick.

With pit stops proving a bit of a stumbling block in Chicagoland for the #18 bunch, Rowdy Nation watched and waited to see if the crew had cleaned up the mistakes and would put together a solid day. Kyle brought his #18 M&M’s Caramel Camry to the attention of his crew. He and crew chief Adam Stevens had discussed the handling of the car and some adjustments were sorely needed to get him back up front. The crew nailed a solid 4-tire stop and Kyle exited pit road in the second spot for the start of stage 2 at lap 82.

Stage 2 was relatively uneventful, with Truex out front and Kyle looking for a way to catch him. Finally, by lap 125, the gap to that speedy #78 seemed to be closing up a bit. Looks can be deceiving, however, as Truex was just in traffic and battling dirty air. Once he got clean race track ahead of him, he stretched the gap on Rowdy again.

Just as it appeared Truex was cruising to a second stage win on the day, he was caught up in a big wreck on lap 149, just one lap shy of the end of the stage, which damaged multiple playoff contenders. This handed the stage win to Kyle instead. Involved in the melee were Truex, Harvick, the #33 of Jeffrey Earnhardt, the #41 of Kurt Busch, the #88 of Dale Jr., the #10 of Danica Patrick, Hamlin, and the #3 of Austin Dillon.

Top 10 at the end of stage 2: Kyle, Kenseth, Larson, Keselowski, Jones, Truex, Hamlin, Johnson, Blaney, and the #1 of Jamie McMurray.

Kyle once again came to pit road for four fresh tires and more adjustments. The crew laid down another respectable stop and got Kyle off pit road in the lead for the start of stage 3. That restart came on lap 160. Kyle got a good start and got away clean from the field. As he took off, Erik Jones got by Kenseth for the second spot. The rookie is proving that Kyle knew talent when he saw it and signed Erik to his truck team a few years back. The field got strung out and there was no change up front for the next several laps. By lap 200, Kenseth had gotten back by Jones for second, but Kyle was leading the field by over a second.

The day’s second non-stage related caution flew on lap 219 for debris. Kyle was solidly in the lead and Adam told him they had reached their fuel window to carry them to the end of the race. Kyle described the handling on the car and noted he needed more help with some adjustments. Adam called him to pit road for another fresh set of Goodyear tires, fuel, and those much-needed adjustments. The crew did their work and again helped Kyle maintain the lead off pit road for the restart. When the green flew over the field for the restart on lap 225, Larson had designs on taking the lead from Rowdy. A close battle between the two Kyles carried all the way through turns 1 and 2, but Rowdy finally cleared Larson going into turn 3.

Once again in clean air out front, Kyle built his lead quickly. By lap 230, it was already over a full second back to second-place Larson. Thirty laps later, Kyle’s lead was over 3 seconds over the now-second place Kenseth. On lap 263, the day’s third non-stage related caution flew for the #5 of Kasey Kahne stopped on the track. It appeared something in Kahne’s rear end had broken. Kyle came to pit road for another set of fresh Goodyears, but ended up leaving second. Why? Pit crew issue? Not this week. Truex gambled on strategy and took two tires on that stop, allowing him to grab the lead off pit road for the restart. The green flew once again on lap 267 and Kyle made quick work of clearing Truex to retake the lead, only to see caution fly once again before the end of the lap for the #38 of David Ragan in the wall. This time, Adam tells him “we’re staying out unless we have a tire problem here.”

The field took the green once again on lap 272 and Kyle got away clean from second place Clint Bowyer. Truex quickly passed that #14 Bowyer machine for second. And again, before completing one lap, caution flew. This time, for the #6 of Trevor Bayne going for a spin. Kyle once again stayed out and took the green for the restart on lap 277, where he once again found himself trying to shake off that pesky #42 machine of Larson. Larson stayed close for a while but Kyle finally managed to start expanding the gap and, by lap 290, his lead was once again well over a second on the rest of the field. With just five laps to go at lap 295, his lead was closing in on 2 seconds. As the laps ticked down, Kyle kept running away from that field growing ever smaller in his mirror behind him. Coming out of turn 4 on the final lap, the checkers waved over that #18 M&M’s Caramel Camry, the win punching Kyle’s ticket to advance into the Round of 12.

Congratulations to the entire #18 team for a well-earned win. Welcome to the round of 12, gentlemen.

Kyle Busch heads into this weekend ready to shake off the issues from Chicagoland and take his #18 M&M's Caramel Joe Gibbs Racing Camry to the front.

Some stats heading into this weekend:

Kyle’s highest NHMS start: Pole, three times – September 2008, July 2012 and July 2014

Kyle’s highest NHMS finish: Winner – twice, July 2006 and July 2015.

Average NHMS II start: 11.08

Average NHMS II finish: 17.17

Average overall NHMS start: 10.3

Average overall NHMS finish: 13.7

While Kyle has enjoyed limited success in the fall races at Loudon, finishing inside the top 10 six times, he has yet to notch a win in the fall event. Will the Magic Mile prove magical for the 18 team? With only three races in each playoff round, he has two more chances to automatically advance into the next round with a race win. His first fall race win at Loudon would certainly be a great way to do it. Only time will tell.

Chicagoland Speedway, the first of the final 10 races in the NASCAR Playoffs, was invaded by the start of NASCAR and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles this past weekend. Kyle Busch and the #18 Skittles Sweet Heat team started off the weekend strong, taking the pole position in Friday's qualifying session.

The drop of the green flag brought more domination from the lightning fast #18 Skittles ride in the first stage. Kyle easily took the first stage, carrying a lead of more than 4 seconds over second place Kevin Harvick as the green checkered flag waved.

Top 10 at the end of Stage 1: Kyle, Harvick, the #24 of Chase Elliott, the #11 of Denny Hamlin, the #22 of Joey Logano, the #2 of Brad Keselowski, the #20 of Matt Kenseth, the #42 of Kyle Larson, the #19 of Daniel Suarez, and the #78 of Martin Truex Jr.

The leaders came in for pit stops during the stage break and Kyle held the lead off pit road for the lap 88 restart, setting the field loose for stage 2. Kyle could not shake Harvick on the restart and Harvick wrestled the lead away from the #18 machine on the first lap. Shortly after that, the trouble began for Kyle and the #18 crew.

A few laps into the run, Kyle reported a vibration and, on lap 96, he came to pit road for an unscheduled 4-tire stop. He was running second prior to the stop. That would not be the only issue. Per NASCAR officials, the #18 crew got a penalty for going over the wall too soon. Kyle would have to do a pass-through penalty. He waited as long as he could, hoping for a caution, but did not get one. He was forced to serve the penalty under green flag conditions. That left him in 30th position, 2 laps down to the leaders.

By lap 114, Kyle had gotten one of his laps back but he was still running back in the 26th position. Kyle fought hard through a round of green flag pit stops and steadily marched his way forward. He was looking to be in the lucky dog position if a caution flew before the end of the stage or when the caution flew to mark the end of the stage. By the time the green and white checkers waved on lap 160, Kyle had advanced to the 16th position, still one lap down.

Top 10 at the end of stage 2: Elliott, Harvick, Truex, Larson, Keselowski, the #41 of Kurt Busch, Kenseth, and the #1 of Jamie McMurray.

Stage 3 went green on lap 167, but it was short-lived, as McMurray went for a spin coming out of turn 2. Kyle was still trapped a lap down in 18th, having not had quite enough time to get by those drivers between him and the free pass position. The caution was a short one, with the field returning to green flag conditions on lap 172. Kyle grabbed the free pass position on lap 174 and held it until about lap 205 when race leader Truex started lapping more cars. On lap 209, caution waved again and again Kyle was trapped a lap down. One 4-tire pit stop later, Kyle restarted in the 16th position, in position for the free pass, should the caution fly again. By lap 225, Kyle found himself chasing the #3 of Austin Dillon for the free pass spot. Ten laps later, he not only needed to get by the #3, but also the #34 of Landon Cassill. By lap 240, Kyle was back in the free pass position and the team was doing the caution dance in the pits, hoping for anything but a problem with the #18 machine to bring the yellow back out.

Unfortunately for the 18s, there would be no yellow flag. The race ran clean and green to the checkers on lap 267. Kyle crossed the line 15th, one lap down to the leaders.

Congratulations to the #78 Furniture Row Racing team on their opening playoff race win.

This weekend, the series heads to the Windy City as the playoffs open. These next ten weeks are filled with pressure, intensity, the thrill of victory and the agony of elimination. Every driver feels the heat. Who will conquer Chicagoland and grab early momentum?

Some stats heading into this weekend’s race:

Kyle’s highest Chicagoland start: Pole, three times, 2008, 2014, 2016

Kyle’s highest Chicagoland finish: Winner, once, 2008

Average Chicagoland start: 12.0

Average Chicagoland finish: 11.0

Kyle Busch is coming off a strong ninth-place finish in Richmond. The biggest news this week, though, is that Kyle heads into the playoffs with a new over-the-wall pit crew. Joe Gibbs Racing made the decision this week to swap the 18 and 19 crews for the playoffs. This is huge, as 5 of Kyle's 6 crew members were with him when he won the Cup in 2015 and three of them have been with him since he came to JGR in 2008. How will the change affect the intangibles within the 18 team as a whole? Difficult to say. Tune in Sunday to find out!

Qualifying: Completed as of this writing.Kyle has the pole!Catch the race: 3:00 p.m. (ET), Sunday, TV: NBCSN (also available on NBC Sports app live)

Kyle Busch heads into this weekend ready for the roller coaster of a regular season for his team to be over and the playoffs to begin. He’s coming off a strong runner-up finish in Darlington’s Southern 500. One last race at Richmond stands between the contenders and the “post-season”. For those on the outside, Richmond represents one last chance to win and get in. For those like Kyle who have already punched their ticket, this is one more opportunity to earn valuable playoff points.

Kyle’s highest Richmond finish: Winner – four times in four consecutive spring races between 2009 and 2012.

Kyle has swept the weekend events (Cup and Xfinity) at Richmond only once. That was in the spring of 2009.

Average Richmond II start: 11.4

Average Richmond II finish: 9.5

Average overall Richmond start: 12.2

Average overall Richmond finish: 7.3

While Kyle has enjoyed much success in the spring races at Richmond, the fall races have traditionally not been as kind to Kyle and his #18 crew. Kyle looks to change that this weekend and notch his third win of the season to build momentum into the playoffs as he begins his run toward a second championship.

Darlington Southern 500 throwback weekend has yet to disappoint as far as the themes go. The team in charge of Darlington Raceway is making it bigger and better each year. As the tradition continues, more and more race teams get on board with throwback paint schemes, making it a good time on and off the track for fans and teams alike.

Kyle Busch came into the weekend as the most recent Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series winner. He had not won at Darlington since 2008. He grabbed a good starting position during Saturday's qualifying session, posting the 3rd fastest lap in the round of 12. Could he turn it into just his second win at the famed “Lady in Black”? Let's look back at this year's edition of the Southern 500.

The green flag flew and it took all of 15 laps before the first caution of the day was displayed. The #6 Fusion of Trevor Bayne found the wall in turn 1 and collected the #47 machine of AJ Allmendinger in the process. The wreck happened behind the leaders, leaving Kyle safely in third as crew chief Adam Stevens called him to pit road for the first stop of the day. Quick work by the crew on Kyle's #18 M&Ms Caramel Camry put him off pit road first, giving him the lead on the lap 21 restart. The three laps Kyle led under this yellow accounted for half the laps Kyle would lead all night.

Lap 40 brought the night's second caution, this time for the #17 of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finding the wall in the exit of turn 4. Kyle was again back in the third position and again, Adam called him to pit road. Kyle zipped on and off pit road, getting another round of solid work from his crew and maintaining his position in the third spot for the lap 46 restart. About 10 laps into the run, Kyle reported he was “too tight to fire off here”. He had fallen back two positions to 5th since the restart.

The race stayed clean and green until the end of the first stage on lap 100. Kyle ended the stage just inside the top ten in the ninth position. When Adam asked about the car as the green checkers flew, Kyle reported that he got looser and looser through that run.

Your top 10 at the end of stage 1 were: The #78 of Martin Truex Jr., the #42 of Kyle Larson, the #11 of Denny Hamlin, the #4 of Kevin Harvick, the #2 of Brad Keselowski, the #77 of Erik Jones, the #1 of Jamie McMurray, the #22 of Joey Logano, Kyle, and the #3 of Austin Dillon.

One unusual thing occurred at the break prior to pit stops. NASCAR tagged the #22 of Logano for failing to maintain speed and sent him to the rear, putting Kyle in P8 as pit road opened. Kyle pitted, as did the rest of the leaders. The crew performed well, gaining him two more spots on pit road and sending him out in sixth for the start of stage 2. As the break wound down, Kyle asked Adam about tire condition on the set they'd just taken off. Adam gave him a run down of the issues the team saw, particularly on his left rear tire. Kyle acknowledged and most likely filed that information away to keep in mind throughout the rest of the race. Given Darlington's rough surface, tire management is critical. It is highly doubtful that Kyle was the only driver asking how his tires looked throughout the night.

The green flag start to stage 2 came on lap 107. Kyle held the sixth position until the caution next flew on lap 125, when the #19 of rookie teammate Daniel Suarez found the wall hard in turn 1. Once again, the leaders took a trip down pit road for fresh tires and fuel. Another solid stop by the #18 crew helped Kyle maintain his track position for the lap 130 restart.

Kyle fell a couple of positions back to eighth over the next ten laps but stabilized there until the caution flew again on lap 155 for a multi-car incident involving the #32 of Matt DiBenedetto, Allmendinger, and the #51 of Cody Ware. The leaders headed down pit road for more fresh rubber and fuel. Kyle's crew gained him two positions on pit road to put him back in the sixth position for the lap 160 restart. With 40 laps to go until the end of stage 2, the race looked to be set up for another long green flag run to the end of the stage. On lap 197, however, the #83 of Gray Gaulding went for a spin, bringing out the caution jut three laps before the end of the stage, meaning the second stage would end under caution. Kyle finished the stage in the fifth position.

Your top 10 at the end of stage 2 were: Truex, Hamlin, Harvick, Larson, Kyle, Keselowski, the #41 of Kurt Busch, McMurray, Dillon, and the #20 of Matt Kenseth.

With the leaders again on pit road under this stage break caution, the 18 bunch delivered a terrific pit stop and gained Kyle three positions, putting him in second next to race leader Harvick for the lap 204 restart. No sooner did the field take the green than the caution flew again on lap 206 for a spin by the #38 of David Ragan in turn 1. Kyle was still in second and, since he had just been on pit road, he stayed out under this caution, as did most of the leaders.

The green flag went back in the air on lap 211and Kyle held the second position behind Hamlin for the next 30-plus laps. He collected a Darlington Stripe around lap 242 when he brushed the wall with the right front of his M&Ms Camry but still held onto his track position until lap 248 when Truex got by. That put Kyle back in the third spot as the first green flag pit stops of the night began around lap 250. Kyle came in as one of the first and his crew delivered a 12.9 second stop, sending him back out on track to wait for all the others to cycle through.

Kyle was back in third when the caution next flew on lap 260 for debris in turn 2. Adam asked about the car and Kyle reported that he “fired off a little snug”. Adam called him to pit road for more fresh tires and fuel. The crew laid down an 11.4 second stop, allowing Kyle to maintain his track position for the lap 265 restart. Kyle got loose on the restart and fell to fourth. A few laps later, he fell to fifth. Kyle held fifth until lap 285, when he got back around Harvick for fourth position. Around lap 290, Kyle reported that the car was the “best it's been all day”.

The next round of green flag stops began around lap 300. Adam told Kyle that some guys were going to 2-stop it but “we're gonna 1-stop it” as he informed Kyle he would not be pitting for another 15-20 laps. By lap 310, only leader Hamlin and Kyle were still on the lead lap. On lap 314, Denny approached pit road but missed it. He gathered the car back up with no damage done and he and Kyle both hit pit road the next lap for what they planned would be their last stop of the day, unless the caution flew. After their stops, they were back in 14th and 15th respectively but climbing through the field quickly with the new tires.

​By lap 330, Kyle was back in tenth. Ten laps later, he had climbed to fifth. By lap 350, Kyle was third, behind only leader Truex and second place Hamlin. Nothing had changed with 10 laps to go and it appeared Truex would cruise to another win. However, with three to go, Truex got his own Darlington Stripe as his right front tire let go. Denny and Kyle both sailed by. Kyle could not catch Denny in the remaining few laps and brought the #18 M&M’s Caramel Camry home in the second position.

Darlington Raceway, aka the “Lady In Black” or “Too Tough To Tame”, is home to the infamous Darlington Stripe. That would be the lovely streak of messed up paint down the right side of your car when you tangle with her walls. Many a driver has a Darlington Stripe story, Kyle Busch included. It was back in 2008, in his first year with Joe Gibbs Racing, that Kyle actually acquired a few of the famed stripes as, with each brush of the wall, his Indiana Jones Mint Crisp M&M’s Camry seemed to get faster. He took it to Victory Lane that year, the only time he’s won at this historic track. He and the team sported Indiana Jones hats and Kyle even carried a whip in some of the pictures from that night. He heads into this weekend fresh off accomplishing his second “triple” at Bristol two weeks ago and a relaxing vacation in the Bahamas during the off week.

Some stats heading into this weekend’s race:

Kyle’s highest Darlington start: 3rd, 2013

Kyle’s highest Darlington finish: Winner, once, 2008

Average Darlington start: 14.7

Average Darlington finish: 12.8

This year, the Darlington throwback theme is the 80s. While Kyle won’t be sporting a throwback scheme, his teammates (and many other drivers) will. As the teams hit the track for some Sunday night racing on this Labor Day weekend and we see if Kyle can continue his winning ways, sit back and enjoy all the history that is the Southern 500.

Bristol Motor Speedway, home of the gladiators of NASCAR, at least when they tangle in “The Last Great Colosseum”, has been both kind and unforgiving to Kyle Busch over the years. This weekend, Kyle rolled into Saturday night on a mission. He won the Truck race Wednesday night. He then won the Xfinity race on Friday night. Could he pull off a second “triple”, in spite of his mid-pack qualifying effort? All of Rowdy Nation waited anxiously for the drop of the green flag to find out.

This OR was actually not in front of a TV for this race, having taken the day to enjoy the Woodward Dream Cruise in the Detroit area. (Anyone who has heard of it knows it is one of the biggest automotive cruises in the country. Well worth your time if you enjoy classic and unique cars.) That said, in these days of social media, it was still impressively easy to keep up with all of the on-track action.

As the green flag flew on a warm Bristol night, pole-sitter Erik Jones in his #77 5-Hour Energy Furniture Row Racing Camry took off and Kyle, back in 18th position for the start, went to work on his march toward the front of the field. Chase Elliott in the #24 Napa Chevy grabbed the lead from Jones on lap 4. Meanwhile, Kyle had found his way into the 13th position and was continuing to climb. The #2 Fusion of Team Penske driver Brad Keselowski suffered a flat left front tire on lap 5, but the race stayed green as he made his way safely to pit road. Erik Jones grabbed the lead back from Elliott on lap 6, while Kyle hovered inside the top 15.

By lap 15, Kyle had grabbed the 12th spot and was looking for more, while Erik Jones continued to run up front. Twenty laps later, Kyle was already up inside the top ten in the 9th position. Just five laps later, Kyle had made the pass for eighth. On lap 51, Jones got passed by the #42 of Kyle Larson for the lead as Rowdy continued clawing his way forward in the seventh position. By the time the first caution fell on lap 62 for a right front flat on the #43 of Aric Almirola, Kyle was all the way up to sixth. Crew chief Adam Stevens brought Kyle in for his first pit stop of the night. The #18 M&M’s Caramel crew hooked Kyle up with four fresh Goodyear tires and fuel and sent him back out on track right where he left off in the sixth spot.

Kyle shot straight to third on the restart on lap 67. By lap 70, he was looking to grab second from Chase Elliott. Kyle stayed consistently among the fastest on the track and by lap 104, he was up to second and chasing down leader Kyle Larson. As the laps in stage 1 wound down, Kyle closed the gap to Larson in lapped traffic. On lap 115, he caught and passed Larson for the lead. On lap 117, Larson got back by Rowdy for the lead. Kyle stayed on Larson’s bumper and stole the lead back just as the stage ended on lap 125. First stage of three on his quest to complete his second Bristol triple was complete.

The top 10 at the end of Stage 1 were: Kyle, Jones, Larson, Elliott, the #20 of Matt Kenseth, the #11 of Denny Hamlin, the #21 of Ryan Blaney, the #22 of Joey Logano, the #78 of Martin Truex Jr., and the #48 of Jimmie Johnson.

During the stage caution, Adam asked Kyle how his #18 M&M’s Caramel Camry was handling. Kyle reported that he was tight. Adam told him they would get him freed up on the stop. The crew got to work, giving him four new Goodyear tires, fuel, and some much-needed adjustment. When the stop was complete, Kyle rolled off pit road in the sixth position for the start of stage 2.

Lap 136, green flag waving once again, the field took off to get stage 2 underway. Kyle was back in third before the end of the first lap under green. By lap 139, Kyle was back in second as Erik Jones once again was leading the way. Kyle settled in behind Jones, keeping the rookie in his sights as the laps ticked by. Hamlin stayed close behind Kyle in the third spot, looking for his own opportunity to take the lead. As the leaders found themselves in lapped traffic, the gap between Jones and Rowdy all but disappeared. Kyle caught Erik and passed him for the lead on lap 168. Kyle began to expand the gap between himself and that #77 machine as they continued to work their way through traffic. Just 4 laps later, Kyle’s lead was already up to three quarters of a second.

The gap between the #18 and the #77 disappeared again on lap 179 as the 77 passed Rowdy for the lead once again, having led 87 laps in the event already. Kyle settled back in behind that 5-Hour Energy car but kept the rookie very close. Kyle got back by him on lap 198 when the young rookie got trapped behind the #27 of Paul Menard. Caution flew for the second time for a non-stage incident involving the #17 of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. as he got a flat right side tire and found the wall. Adam called Kyle to pit road for four tires and fuel. After an impressive 11.8 second stop, Kyle won the race off pit road. He led the way on the restart on lap 207, taking off quickly. Larson got by the 77 on the start, making it the Kyle and Kyle show out front for the next several laps until Kenseth got by Larson on lap 213 for second.

The #47 of AJ Allmendinger had a problem on lap 220, resulting in a left rear flat tire, after contact from his teammate, Chris Buescher, in the #37 machine. Allmendinger managed to make it to pit road safely, so the race once again stayed green. Caution flew for the third time for a non-stage related incident on lap 232 as the #33 of Jeffrey Earnhardt and the #3 of Austin Dillon got together in turn 4. The #5 of Kasey Kahne also got into the back of the #23 of Corey LaJoie and then the wall behind them. The #6 of Trevor Bayne and the Stenhouse machine also both took minor damage as they checked up to avoid the wreck ahead of them. After some discussion, Adam made the call to bring Kyle to pit road at the last second for four fresh tires and fuel. Kyle won the race off of pit road but a total of six cars stayed on the race track, leaving Kyle in the seventh position for the restart on lap 245. With only five laps to go in the second stage, Kyle could not find his way back to the front and finished stage 2 in the eighth spot when the green checkers waved on lap 250.

The top 10 at the end of Stage 2 were: Kenseth, Johnson, the #4 of Kevin Harvick, the #31 of Ryan Newman, Jones, Larson, Hamlin, Kyle, Menard, and the #14 of Clint Bowyer.

The restart to get the third and final stage underway came on lap 257 and, after the leaders pitted, Kyle found himself in the third position by staying out on the race track. Kyle found his groove on the track and quickly worked his way into second position behind Erik Jones before lap 260. Still riding in second around lap 280, Kyle reported to the crew that he was “loose on the extremities”, meaning at entry and exit of the turns. Adam acknowledged and Kyle kept digging in the second position, not letting Jones out of his sight.

With 300 laps complete and 200 still to go, Kyle continued to run in the second position behind the #77 machine. Chase Elliott ran third and Larson was running fourth. By lap 310, the gap between Jones and Kyle was over a second. The gap was up to about 2 seconds by lap 320. Lap 330 found the leaders back in heavy lapped traffic and the gap between first and second began to shrink. The shrinking was temporary, though, as Jones found his way through and the gap returned to about 2 seconds between the #77 and the #18. Around lap 350, Kyle had fallen back to fourth. The caution flew for the fourth non-stage related incident on lap 354, this time for the #13 of Ty Dillon and the #6 of Bayne.

Kyle and Adam agreed they needed to pit under this caution. Kyle brought his #18 M&M’s Caramel Camry to the attention of his crew. The crew delivered a 14.3 second stop as they gave Kyle four fresh Goodyear tires, fuel, and some adjustments. Kyle rolled off pit road in the fourth position for the restart. The green flag waved for the field on lap 360. Kyle shot straight to second, then into the lead on lap 361, ahead of Erik Jones in second and Harvick in third. Kyle continued to lead the field until the caution flew on lap 397 for an incident involving Ty Dillon in the #13, Harvick, and Chase Elliott. The wreck ended the night for the #13, while Harvick and Elliott were both able to continue. Adam asked Kyle what he needed here. Kyle said the car took off well, but it built tight. Adam called him to pit road for four tires, fuel, and adjustments. After a 14.2 second stop, Kyle once again left pit road in the third position. Erik Jones got off pit road with the lead after a solid 4-tire stop from his crew.

The restart came on lap 401 and Kyle fell to fourth as Harvick went forward into second. Kenseth then grabbed second from Harvick a few laps later. When the caution flew for a hard wreck in turn 1 by the #34 of Landon Cassill on lap 415, Kyle was still in fourth. After some discussion regarding their last set of sticker tires, the team agreed that Kyle would keep his track position and stay out under this caution. The caution was a quick one and the green flag went back in the air on lap 421. Erik Jones once again led the way and Kyle quickly got past Kenseth to grab the second position. Kyle then set his sights on Jones, hunting for a way around the rookie. Kenseth got back by Kyle on lap 427 but Kyle continued to stay close in third. Around lap 430, Kyle reported that he was chattering the rear tires all the way through. Kyle not only grabbed second back from Kenseth but grabbed the lead at the same time on lap 445 in one quick move.

Kyle began to try to grow the gap between his #18 and the #77 chasing him. The rookie Jones would not give up, though, and stayed close on Kyle’s bumper, not letting him get too far ahead. Lap 454, Kyle holds the lead as Kenseth grabs second from Jones. With Kenseth in second, Kyle stretches the gap out to almost eight tenths of a second over Kenseth. The battle for second continued for several laps as the rookie fought to get back to second. Jones took second back on lap 465 as Kyle continued to lead the way. The laps wound down and Rowdy Nation waited. 30 laps to go, Kyle’s lead is over a second to Erik Jones… 20 laps to go, Kyle’s gap over second was shrinking, with Jones having closed the gap by almost four tenths of a second… 10 to go… Jones closed the gap to only four tenths of a second… 5 to go… This OR was holding her breath as the laps wound down. Kyle held a lead of eight tenths of a second. Would it be enough?

​Kyle wove his way through lapped traffic as the laps ticked down. White flag! Kyle is told “one more”. The field thunders around Bristol Motor Speedway one last time with Rowdy literally screaming toward the checkers over his radio. The sweep is complete! Kyle did it again!

Noteworthy here – his Cup crew pitted him all three races, so they pulled off the sweep as well. Well done, gentlemen.

Bristol Motor Speedway is known as the “Last Great Colosseum” in the NASCAR world. Bristol is a classic short track, measuring just over a half mile in length on one trip around the oval. This track has been traditionally known for tight racing, close contact, and liberal use of the “chrome horn” as drivers jockey for position. The night race is Bristol’s marquee event. It’s the one that is on most fans’ bucket lists. While this OR has yet to make the trip, I can guarantee you it is definitely on my list.

Kyle Busch has had varied luck here at Bristol Motor Speedway. He has 24 total starts at Bristol in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. While he’s notched five wins, with two of them coming in the night race, he has also finished 30th or worse 6 times, most of those resulting from crash damage. In 2010, Kyle pulled off the “triple”. He won all three of the August events (Truck, Xfinity, and Cup) in the Colosseum. He is, so far, the only driver to accomplish this. He will try again this weekend.

Kyle successfully started his bid for a second triple this weekend with a win in Wednesday night’s Truck Series race. His journey continues with Friday night’s Xfinity race. Can he capture lightning in a bottle again and complete a second Bristol triple? We’ll just have to watch and find out.

This weekend, the series heads to the Finger Lakes region of the state of New York for the series' second road course race. Kyle Busch is coming off a win in Pocono last weekend and has been on a hot streak in qualifying, as well. He has grabbed the pole in the last two consecutive races and has done it again today for his third pole in a row and fourth in the last five races.

Some stats heading into this weekend’s race:

Kyle’s highest Watkins Glen start: Pole, twice, 2008 and 2011

Kyle’s highest Watkins Glen finish: Winner, once, 2008

Average WGI start: 8.0

Average WGI finish: 10.1

Kyle is coming off his first Xfinity Series win here just yesterday and is looking like he's found a hot streak in the last few weeks. Will it continue today with his first weekend sweep on this picturesque road course? Tune in this afternoon and find out!

Qualifying: Completed as of this writing. Kyle has the pole!Catch the race: 3:00 p.m. (ET), TV: NBCSN (also available on NBC Sports app live)

Pocono Raceway is one of the most unique tracks on the circuit. It is known as the “Tricky Triangle” and its slogan is “What turn 4?” for that very reason. Pocono, until the checkers flew on Sunday, was one of two tracks left on the circuit where Kyle Busch had yet to win a Cup points race event. He was fast when the series was last here in June but a late caution ended his hopes of a win. Would the list of tracks left to win at be reduced to one by the end of the day? Let's take a look back at the Overton's 400 and find out.

Pocono is the first track this season to host Cup qualifying and the race on the same day. As a result, pit stalls were chosen based on the qualifying results from Indianapolis. Since Kyle sat on the pole in Indy, he had first pit selection. As it turned out, Kyle would have had first stall selection either way because he laid down a fast lap around the triangle to take the pole in Pocono as well, sweeping the Cup poles for Pocono this season.

Kyle took his pole position and ran with it in his #18 M&Ms Caramel Camry with the drop of the green flag. His great start would be short lived, however, as there was a big wreck in turn 3 before even one lap could be completed.. Among those involved in the wreck were the #3 of Austin Dillon, the #10 of Danica Patrick, the #20 of JGR teammate Matt Kenseth, the #27 of Paul Menard, the #32 of Matt DiBenedetto, the #37 of Chris Buescher, the #43 of Aric Almirola, and the #95 of Michael McDowell. Track cleanup took some time and the field took the restart on lap 7, with Kyle taking off once again.

Kyle led the way until lap 21, when he hit pit road for his first stop of the day under green flag conditions. The ever speedy 18 crew fixed him up with four fresh Goodyear tires and fuel and sent him on his way. By lap 30, pit stops were still cycling but Kyle was poised to retake the lead once the cycle completed. On lap 42, eight laps before the end of stage 1, the pit cycle finally wrapped up and Kyle was once again in the lead. As the stage wound down, crew chief Adam Stevens asked Kyle about the handling on the #18 machine. Kyle reported that the car was good but here was one area where he could use more rear grip but he wasn't sure if it was something that could be corrected. Lap 50 brought the end of the stage and, with it, a playoff point for Kyle as he took the green and white checkered flag.

Your top 10 at the end of stage 1 were: Kyle, the #78 of Martin Truex Jr., the #4 of Kevin Harvick, the #2 of Brad Keselowski, the #21 of Ryan Blaney, the #1 of Jamie McMurray, the #11 of Denny Hamlin, the #14 of Clint Bowyer, the #42 of Kyle Larson, and the #24 of Chase Elliott.

Most of the leaders pitted during the stage break, including Kyle. The #18 crew hooked Kyle up with four fresh tires, fuel and adjustments, sending him back on the track in 13.5 seconds. Teammate Matt Kenseth stayed out, so Kyle lined up for the start of stage 2 in second position.

Lap 55 brought the restart and Kyle grabbed the lead from the 20 in turn 3. The second caution of the day came on lap 57 when the #48 of Jimmie Johnson hit the wall in turn 3. “Save save save” came the call from Adam Stevens. The plan was to stay out under this caution unless Kyle had a problem.

No problems, so Kyle stayed out with the lead for the lap 61 restart. Kyle took off and immediately began building his lead over the rest of the field. Lap 70 saw the day's third non-stage break caution flag, this time for debris in turn 1. Kyle said it looked like a driveshaft. TV replays showed it had come from Larson's 42 car. Adam told Kyle to pit under this caution. Kyle came down pit road to the attention of his crew and got four more fresh tires, fuel, and small adjustments. The crew did fast work, finishing their work in just 11.8 seconds. Brad Keselowski beat Kyle off pit road, but only because the 2 crew did a two tire stop.

Both Hamlin in the 11 and Austin Dillon in the 3 stayed out, putting Kyle in the fourth spot for the restart on lap 75. Kyle quickly advanced into second before the end of the first lap back under green. Unfortunately, he developed a loose condition almost as quickly that saw him fall as far back as seventh over the next several laps before he began to recover and work his way back toward the front. By lap 90, Kyle was only up to sixth.

Lap 97 saw Kyle come downpit road for his third stop of the day just before the end of stage 2. The call was once again a 4-tire stop and fuel. Kyle ended the second stage in the 21st position.

Your top 10at the end of stage 2 were: Bowyer, Keselowski, the #10 of Danica Patrick, the #41 of Kurt Busch, the #31 of Ryan Newman, the #5 of Kasey Kahne, the #17 of Ricky Stenhouse Jr, the #6 of Trevor Bayne, the #95 of Michael McDowell, and the #47 of AJ Allmendinger.

The start of stage 3 came on lap 106 and, after the leaders made their pit stops during the stage break, Kyle lined up in the fifth spot. Before the end of the lap, he had advanced into third. He held steady in third for the next several laps before finally retaking the lead on lap 130. Kyle still needed to pit one more time, though, so strategy would be key.

Kyle made the trip down pit road from the lead on lap 135, taking four fresh tires, fuel and adjustments in a 12.9 second stop. By lap 140, Kyle was back up to seventh as green flag stops continued. On lap 145, the pit cycle was complete and Kyle was back in the lead with just 15 laps to go. Kyle worked to build his lead and, by lap 150, over 3 seconds separated him from the second place car of Harvick. With five laps to go, he had increased his lead to over 4 seconds. The laps wound down and Rowdy Nation held our breath. Would it all finally come together? Were the 18s finally headed to Victory Lane in Pocono?

White flag in the air! Kyle still held a sizable lead over Harvick. Just three. More. Turns! Kyle came flying out of turn 3 and charged toward the checkered flag like a man on a mission long overdue to be completed. The checkers waved for the #18 M&Ms Caramel car and the team's celebration began almost as soon as he crossed the finish line. Kylefinally crossed Pocono of his list of “never-won” Cup tracks.

Congratulations to the whole #18 Joe Gibbs Racing team. This one was well earned.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway – just the name can conjure up many a historic battle on the track for any longtime fan of racing. NASCAR’s first points race at this famed track took place in 1994 but there was something of an unofficial race that took place the year before at the first test on this 2.5 mile oval. You can find the video here. Pretty incredible stuff.

This weekend marks the 24th running of the Brickyard 400. Title sponsor names may have changed over the years, but NASCAR fans all know it as The Brickyard. Kyle Busch comes into this weekend having won the last four consecutive points events held at Indy. Two Xfinity races, two Brickyard 400 Cup wins. He even started from the pole in last year’s Cup event. The new variable this year? Stage racing. That could change everything.

Can Kyle make it three in a row? It’s never been done before, so anyone who knows Rowdy knows he’d love to ink his name in the record books beside yet another history-making win. With the struggles the 18 team has had this season, another win here would help immensely.

Some stats heading into this weekend’s race:

Kyle’s highest Indy start: Pole, once, 2016

Kyle’s highest Indy finish: Winner, twice, 2015, 2016

Average Indy start: 17.5

Average Indy finish: 9.0

After teammate Denny Hamlin’s first win of the season for JGR last week, Kyle is even hungrier to grab his own first win of the season. Buckle up, tune in, and find out if Rowdy can pull off the three-peat.

Venue: Daytona International SpeedwayThe Race: Coke Zero 400The Date: Saturday, July 1, 2017The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series enters the second half of the season with a bang, as the field takes to the high banks of Daytona International Speedway for the second time this season. The race formerly known to longtime fans of the sport as the Firecracker 400 is no longer annually held on the 4th of July, nor is it run in the morning but it definitely still brings a lot of fireworks when it comes to the action on the track. Last year, Kyle Busch started this race from the 3rd position. It was a good start that led to a runner-up finish behind race winner Brad Keselowski. Kyle has made the trip to Victory Lane just once at Daytona in the Cup Series. That win came on a hot July night in the 2008 edition of the Coke Zero 400. This week sees the second different interim crew chief on top of the pit box, as two loose lug nuts in Sonoma have now sidelined Ben Beshore for the week. At the rate the penalties have piled up, the jokes are out there that Kyle’s wife, Samantha, might be stuck calling the shots Saturday night.

Some stats heading into this weekend’s race:

Kyle’s highest Daytona II start: Pole, once, 2013

Kyle’s highest Daytona II finish: Winner, once, 2008

Average Daytona II start: 16.08

Average Daytona II finish: 14.83

Average overall Daytona start: 14.5

Average overall Daytona finish: 18.4

Halfway through the season, Kyle and the 18 crew are still hunting (and very hungry) for their first win. They have battled hard through the season thus far and are a strong 4th in the point standings, highest among those without a win. Is this the week that Kyle and his crew finally make their first visit to Victory Lane and secure their spot in the playoffs? Buckle up, tune in, and enjoy 400 miles of Saturday night fireworks to find out. Qualifying: Friday, 4:15 p.m. (ET), TV: NBCSN (also available on NBC Sports app live)Catch the race: 7:00 p.m. (ET), TV: NBC (also available on NBC Sports app live)

Venue: Michigan International SpeedwayThe Race: FireKeepers Casino 400The Race Date: Sunday, June 18, 2017This weekend, the series heads to the Irish Hills of Michigan for some high-speed racing at Michigan International Speedway. Kyle comes into this weekend looking to break free from a string of disappointing finishes and bad luck. While the high banks of MIS haven’t always been the kindest to Kyle, he has won here, breaking through for his first Cup series win at MIS back in August, 2011. Last year, Kyle started the race from the 9th position. Not bad, but Kyle started the race strongly, only to have the engine in his M&Ms Camry expire on lap 52. Not the finish he and the 18 crew wanted to see.

Some stats heading into this weekend’s race:

Kyle’s highest Michigan I start: Pole, once, 2008

Kyle’s highest Michigan I finish: 2nd, 2008

Average Michigan I start: 12.75

Average Michigan I finish: 19.8

Average overall Michigan start: 14.1

Average overall Michigan finish: 20.4

Kyle is still looking for his first win this season after having several near misses, including last weekend’s Pocono race. Notching a second trip to Victory Lane in the Irish Hills would be a good way to get things turned around. Can he shake the dark cloud that seems to be hovering over him lately? Buckle up, tune in, and enjoy the 400 mile Sunday afternoon ride to the checkers to find out. Qualifying: Friday, 4:15 p.m. (ET), TV: FS2 (also available on Fox Sports Go app live)Catch the race: 3:00 p.m. (ET), TV: FS1 (also available on Fox Sports Go app live)

Venue: Pocono Raceway, Long Pond, PAThe Race: Axalta presents the Pocono 400 (160 laps, 400 miles) Stage Ends: 50/100/16018 Team Start: POLE!18 Team Finish: 9thAfter the disastrous race in Dover that resulted in the 4-week suspension of crew chief Adam Stevens, rear changer Jake Seminara, and rear carrier Kenny Barber, Kyle Busch and the rest of the Joe Gibbs Racing 18 team were more than ready for the trip to the Poconos and a new opportunity to cross Pocono Raceway off the list of “never wons”, meaning a track where Kyle has never won a Cup Series points race. Ben Beshore, 18 team race engineer, was at the helm for the first time in place of Adam Stevens. Adam Hartman and Anwar Parrish took over changer and carrier duties for Jake and Kenny respectively. The weekend started off strong, as Kyle put his #18 M&M’s Camry on the pole for the second week in a row. The team continued tweaking on the car’s handling throughout the remaining practices and Kyle confidently led the field off pit road toward the green flag Sunday afternoon. As the green flag waved on a picture-perfect Pennsylvania afternoon, Kyle launched his M&Ms Camry out in front and began to drive away from the competition. Ten laps in, he already held a greater than 2 second lead over the rest of the field. Kyle noted that the car was “pretty good”. Green flag pit stops began around lap 15 while Kyle continued to show the way up front. The first pit stop for the 18 crew came on lap 17. Kyle brought his M&Ms Red White & Blue machine to the attention of his crew for four fresh Goodyear tires and fuel. As the pit stop cycle continued, Kyle found his way back into the top ten by lap 20. By lap 25, just two cars stood between him and the lead and neither had been on pit road yet. On lap 35 with just 15 laps to go in the first stage, leader Erik Jones finally pitted, completing the pit cycle and putting Kyle back in the lead. By lap 40, Kyle’s lead was up to 4.4 seconds over then-second place Kevin Harvick. The final ten laps of the stage were relatively uneventful up front and Kyle easily took the stage win at lap 50. The top 10 at the end of Stage 1 were: Kyle, Harvick, the #2 of Brad Keselowski, the #42 of Kyle Larson, the #48 of Jimmie Johnson, the #24 of Chase Elliott, the #41 of Kurt Busch, the #20 of Matt Kenseth, the #1 of Jamie McMurray, and the #3 of Austin Dillon. Kyle came down pit road with the rest of the leaders at the stage break for fresh tires, fuel, and adjustments, leaving pit road second behind the #77 of Erik Jones for a restart in the third position behind the #17 of Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who opted not to pit under the stage caution. The green flag start of Stage 2 came on lap 56 and Kyle went to work on getting by the front two. By lap 59, Kyle was once again leading the field and driving away. Meanwhile, that same lap saw the end of Dale Earnhardt Jr’s day, as he took his #88 Axalta machine to the garage with engine and transmission issues. A tough break for Dale Jr, as he continues to struggle in his final season. All was quiet for Kyle up front, as he continued to be out in his own zip code, so to speak, having built an almost 10 second lead on the field by lap 80. Ten laps later, Kyle finally got the word to bring his #18 M&Ms Camry to pit road for his green flag stop. Four new tires and a full tank of fuel later, Kyle was back on the track. Lap 95 brought the day’s first non-stage end caution, as Johnson and McMurray both suffered catastrophic brake failures in turn 1. Johnson went hard into the outside wall, while McMurray’s car caught fire and came to rest near the inside wall. As the #1 car slowed, TV viewers could see Jamie working very quickly to remove his seat belts and other safety devices. As soon as it came to a stop, Jamie exited the car and moved quickly to put distance between himself and his flaming wreckage. It was good to see him safe and unharmed. Meanwhile, when Jimmie finally got out of his car, he walked over to the outside wall and sat down, almost certainly to catch his breath after such a hard hit. This OR is very thankful to be able to say that both drivers were checked and cleared in the infield care center. Meanwhile, NASCAR displayed the red flag on lap 97 to allow for track cleanup. Kyle sat in the fourth position. The red flag lasted a total of 23 minutes, 25 seconds. Pit road remained closed when the red flag was lifted and the field lined up for the restart on lap 99 with just one lap remaining in stage 2. Kyle got a solid restart from his spot in the second row and was quickly up to second, chasing Kyle Larson for the lead. He got close, but not quite close enough, as the green checkers flew on lap 100 to mark the end of Stage 2. The top 10 at the end of Stage 2 were: Larson, Kyle, the #78 of Martin Truex Jr., Harvick, Elliott, Jones, Keselowski, Kurt Busch, the #5 of Kasey Kahne, and Kenseth.Kyle and crew opted not to pit under this stage break, instead choosing track position, as Kyle only had about 5 or 6 green flag laps on his tires. With that decision, Kyle started Stage 3 in the lead when the green flew on lap 105. He once again easily cleared the field and worked to increase the distance quickly. By lap 110, his lead was almost 2 seconds. However, he had picked up a small piece of debris on the grille of the M&Ms machine. The team told him to “keep an eye on your temps”. Five laps later with a lead of almost 4 seconds, Kyle reports in and says that the temps are good and the balance is “pretty good”. By lap 120, Kyle’s lead shrunk a bit, but only because he used a lapped car to remove the debris from his grille.Around lap 123, the window opened for teams to make their last green flag pit stops of the day. Kyle got the call to bring the #18 in from the lead on lap 125 for his stop. The crew laid down a fast, clean 4 tire stop and sent Kyle on his way. He was shown in the 12th position when he rejoined the field and awaited the completion of the pit cycle. By lap 129, Kyle was back up to fourth as green flag stops continued. Five laps later, just the #2 of Keselowski remained ahead of him, having not yet visited pit road. On lap 140, Keselowski finally hits pit road, handing the lead back to Kyle with just 20 laps remaining in the race.

It truly appeared to be Kyle’s race to lose until, on the very next lap, Kasey Kahne hit the wall and brought out the day’s final caution. Kyle and crew were in a “lose-lose” situation. As the leader, the field would do whatever he didn’t. If he came for tires, he would lose track position, if he didn’t come in for tires, everyone else would and he would be the one on the oldest tires. The call came in: Kyle would be staying out. Track position had won as being the most important. As expected, almost all the leaders hit pit road, except for Kyle and Keselowski. Kyle got a clean restart on lap 147 and worked to put distance between himself and the rest of the field. However, that clean restart was still no match for the fresher tires on the field behind him. He lost the lead to the #21 of Ryan Blaney on lap 150. He would lose several more positions before he settled into the ninth position on lap 156. The checkers flew for first-time winner Ryan Blaney on lap 160, with Kyle crossing the line in the ninth position.Your top ten at the end of the race were: W – Blaney P2 – Harvick P3 – Jones P4 – Kurt BuschP5 – Keselowski P6 – Truex P7 – Larson P8 – Elliott P9 – Kyle P10 – KensethNext up: Some high speed racing on the high banks of Michigan International Speedway, this OR’s home track, on Sunday afternoon. Tune in to see if Kyle can shake his bad luck and finally break through for his first points race win of the season! (Also: Look for at-track tweets from ME on the NASCARFemale official feed!)

Coca-Cola 600 Advance May 27th, 2017Venue: Charlotte Motor SpeedwayThe Race: Coca-Cola 600The Date: Sunday, May 28, 2017This weekend, the series heads to Charlotte Motor Speedway for the longest race of the season, the Coca-Cola 600. Kyle Busch comes into this weekend as the most recent All-Star Race winner, having finally broken through to grab victory last Saturday night. Kyle still has yet to win a points-paying Cup Series event here and would love nothing more than to change that Sunday night. Last year, Kyle started the race from the 16th position. Kyle improved on this dramatically in Thursday's qualifying session, putting his Joe Gibbs Racing red, white, and blue M&Ms Toyota Camry on the front row in the second position.

Kyle is still looking to notch a win this season that will put him in the playoffs. Checking off one of the two remaining tracks where he has never won a points race in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series would certainly be sweet. Will he finally break through for a win in the series' longest race? You’ll just have to tune in and find out. Qualifying: Completed as of this writing.Catch the race: 6:00 p.m. (ET), TV: Fox (also available on Fox Sports Go app live)

This weekend, the series heads to Texas Motor Speedway for the O’Reilly Auto Parts 500. Kyle Busch comes into this weekend as the defending race winner from last spring. Kyle’s two wins here have both come in the spring race. Without a win in the books yet this season, but coming off a runner-up finish in Martinsville, Kyle is primed to make a trip to Victory Lane. Texas could be just the place.

Last year, Kyle started the race from the 15th position. Kyle will be looking to improve on that in Friday’s qualifying session.

Some stats heading into this weekend’s race:

Kyle’s highest Texas I start: Pole, once, 2013

Kyle’s highest Texas I finish: Winner, twice, 2013 and 2016

Average Texas I start: 14.3

Average Texas I finish: 11.7

Average overall Texas start: 14.4

Average overall Texas finish: 11.6

Kyle is itching to notch a win this season and the sooner the better, as far as he’s concerned. Will Texas be the place? You’ll just have to tune in and find out.

With the west coast swing in the books and Kyle Busch still looking for his first win of 2017, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series rolled into Martinsville, Virginia for the first short track action of the season. Kyle finally tasted victory here in the Cup series last spring. A second grandfather clock trophy awaited him if he could just survive these 500 laps at the “paperclip” and have his #18 Joe Gibbs Racing M&Ms Toyota Camry at the head of the pack when the checkers flew.

As the field finished up the pace laps and headed toward the green flag, Kyle’s spotter, Tony Hirschman, gave him a few last words of encouragement. “Take care of it all day. Race smart. We’ll have something to run ‘em hard at the end. Have fun.”

Green flag in the air! The field thundered around Martinsville’s tight corners and Kyle fought hard to hold his spot but by lap 10, he had fallen back to 12th. Tony told crew chief Adam Stevens on the alternate radio channel that it appeared Kyle had gotten “super tight” off of turn 4 a couple of times. A few laps later, Kyle reported that he was fighting a tight-center condition, confirming what Tony had been seeing. Kyle fell back one more spot on lap 19 as the #48 of Jimmie Johnson caught and passed him for that 12th position. It took another 20 laps for Kyle to get that spot back as he followed Johnson through the field. Seven laps later, Kyle took advantage of some lapped traffic and passed Johnson to claim the 11th spot. His stay there was short-lived, as Johnson found a way back by the M&Ms machine just three laps later.

As the field continued to spread out around the short half-mile oval, Kyle continued to follow Johnson, looking for any passing opportunities. They both passed the #14 machine of Clint Bowyer on lap 53, putting Kyle back in the 11th position. On lap 56, Kyle returned to the top 10 with a pass on the #42 Target Chevrolet of Kyle Larson. Kyle held the tenth spot as the day’s first caution flew on lap 69 for a spin by the #17 of Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. Kyle and Adam discussed the handling on the car and what adjustments Kyle thought he needed as they approached the first pit stop. The first pit stop brought four fresh Goodyear tires, fuel, and some adjustments from the #18 over-the-wall crew. Kyle rolled off pit road in seventh for the restart. However, a speeding penalty on the #2 Miller Lite machine of Brad Keselowski and an “over the wall too soon” penalty on the #22 crew for Joey Logano moved Kyle into the fifth position. The green flag flew to get the field back underway on lap 77. With Kyle now in the top five, he could sniff the lead and he wanted it. On lap 88, he moved into the fourth spot. Four laps later, he passed the #4 machine of Kevin Harvick for third. On lap 101, Kyle got past the #78 of Martin Truex, Jr. for second behind the #11 machine of teammate Denny Hamlin.

Lap 106 saw the day’s second yellow flag as a result of a wreck by the #1 machine of Jamie McMurray. McMurray had a tire go down that put him into the wall. Kyle was still riding in second behind Hamlin. Kyle and Adam once again talked strategy and handling. Kyle rolled down pit road with the majority of the leaders for four new tires, fuel, and some more adjustments, leaving pit road fifth for a restart in ninth behind those that had opted not to pit. “Take care of your fenders, take care of your tires. Copy?” That was the last instruction Adam gave Kyle before the green flew once again on lap 117. Kyle was already back up to sixth by lap 120. The very next lap, he passed Larson to return to the top 5. This turned out to be just in time, as the #88 of Dale Earnhardt, Jr. spun on lap 122 to bring the caution out for a third time, just eight laps before the scheduled end of stage 1. Kyle stayed out under this caution since he had just been on pit road under the last yellow. Kyle quickly moved into the fourth position when the green flew for the restart on lap 127. On lap 129, coming to the green and white checkers that mark the end of the stage, Kyle got by Keselowski for the third spot. This earned Kyle 8 stage points.

The top ten at the end of Stage 1 were: Truex, Hamlin, Kyle, Keselowski, the #24 of Chase Elliott, Larson, the #21 of Ryan Blaney, Johnson, the #3 of Austin Dillon, and Bowyer.

No sooner had the stage flag flown, Kyle was on the radio. “How bad is it?” He’d made some contact with Keselowski while making the pass and was concerned about damage. Tony and Adam discussed it briefly on the alternate radio channel and then came back on the main frequency to tell Kyle it looked good, though they would take another close look at it next time by. “Maybe a touch, top of the ‘Camry’, but nothing to worry about” came Tony’s assessment. Adam agreed, saying “the ‘M’ looks a little flat but not bad, man.” Adam told Kyle to stay out this time. As a result, Kyle inherited the lead for the start of Stage 2. That start came on lap 141 and Kyle took off with the #24 of Elliott hot on his tail. Trouble for teammate Daniel Suarez came on lap 144 but there was no caution as Elliott bumped Kyle to steal the top spot. Kyle took it back on lap 151 and checked out. Over the next 50 laps, Kyle’s lead over the rest of the field grew to a full second. On lap 215, as he held that one-second lead, Kyle reported “exit could stand to be better still”. As the laps continued to tick by, Kyle widened the gap between himself and second place. By lap 250, with just 10 laps to go before the end of Stage 2, his lead was almost 4 seconds. It looked like Kyle might grab the stage win, even as the gap began to shrink while he worked through lap traffic. Unfortunately, as the field came to the green and white checkers for the end of Stage 2, Stenhouse bumped Kyle out of the way to get back on the lead lap. That allowed Elliott to pass him as well, leaving Kyle fuming in 2nd place.

The top ten at the end of Stage 2 were: Elliott, Kyle, Keselowski, Johnson, Blaney, Earnhardt Jr., the #20 of Matt Kenseth, the #77 of Erik Jones, the #6 of Trevor Bayne, and the #5 of Kasey Kahne.

While the second place finish in the stage earned Kyle 9 stage points, his radio commentary that followed was definitely NSFW and will not be repeated here. Needless to say, he was unimpressed with Stenhouse’s move. Adam reminded Kyle there was still a race to win. The team discussed the damage to Kyle’s race car. It was mostly on the left side and the worst appeared to be on the left rear. Adam directed the crew with specific information to help them repair it as Kyle came down pit road with the rest of the leaders for a pit stop. The crew worked quickly on another four tire stop. Rear tire carrier Kenny Barber and rear changer Jake Seminara worked on the left rear area to get the #18 machine back in good shape. Kyle left pit road in second behind Elliott for the start of Stage 2.

The green flag flew on lap 273 to get Stage 3 underway. Kyle immediately took the lead. Smoke could be seen from the left rear of his car almost as soon as the green flew, indicating a tire rub condition. The team kept an eye on it. Caution flew for debris on lap 279. Spotter Tony reported that the tire rub seemed to be improving and Adam agreed. Adam told Kyle to stay out under this caution. The restart came on lap 284 and Kyle kept the lead during the short green flag run that promptly ended on lap 288 with a multi-vehicle wreck involving Dillon, the #41 of Kurt Busch, Suarez, the #37 of Chris Buescher, Hamlin, and Stenhouse, among others. Suarez definitely took the worst of the damage in the incident. Adam once again told Kyle to stay out unless he had a problem.

Another restart on lap 294, another caution on lap 296. This time, it was the #41 pounding the wall, with Kurt reporting he was done for the day. Again, Kyle stayed out and held the lead as the field got back underway on lap 302. Caution flew for the sixth time on lap 308 as the #23 of Gray Gaulding went for a spin. As before, Kyle stayed out. Kyle maintained the lead on the lap 313 restart and began widening the gap once again between the #18 and the rest of the field. By lap 330, the gap was once again almost a full second. Three laps later, the field slowed for the seventh caution of the day as the #15 of Reed Sorenson met the wall the hard way in turn 3. Finally, Kyle was told to pit under this caution. Adam asked what he needed and Kyle explained the handling on the M&Ms Camry. After a blazing 11.8 second 4-tire stop, Kyle rolled off pit road first to start in the third spot behind Hamlin and Stenhouse, who had opted not to pit. “Save what you can here” was the word from Tony, as he reminded Kyle to save some fuel under yellow. The restart came on lap 340 and Kyle was back in the lead by turn 3. Over the next 50 laps, Kyle built his lead back up to over 1.5 seconds. The eighth yellow of the day came on lap 390 as the #33 of Jeffrey Earnhardt spun. Kyle came to pit road once again for another 4-tire stop. The crew delivered an 11.6 second stop to keep Kyle out front. Kyle took off cleanly on the lap 399 restart but it was clear the car was not handling quite as well as it had been before the caution. Second-place Keselowski closed the gap and passed Kyle for the lead on lap 405.

Caution flew for the ninth time on lap 406, as the #32 of Matt DiBenedetto wrecked in turn 3. Kyle told Adam the car was “plowing center”. Adam informed him that all they had done was put fresh tires on the M&Ms machine. Kyle was tight center and loose on exit. Kyle stayed after it, though, taking the lead back on the lap 414 restart. Four laps later, Kyle was solidly in the lead as the yellow came out yet again for another multi-vehicle wreck. At least 6 cars were involved, including Hamlin, Earnhardt Jr, the #47 of AJ Allmendinger, and the #10 of Danica Patrick, among others. Kyle is told to stay out unless he has a problem. He maintained the lead on the restart on lap 426 but lost it to Keselowski three laps later, just before the caution flew for a spin by Truex. Kyle restarted in that second position but stayed with Keselowski as they battled for the lead. Kyle took the lead on lap 443 but only managed to hold it until lap 457, as Keselowski’s #2 Miller Lite machine came on strong. Kyle held onto the second position for the remainder of the race, crossing the finish line ahead of third place Chase Elliott as the checkers flew on lap 500.

Congratulations to Team Penske on the win for their 1000th race. Quite a milestone for the Captain.

While a repeat championship was not in the cards for Kyle Busch when the checkers flew over Homestead last November, Kyle still had an incredible run. He visited Victory Lane four times in 2016, crossing two more “never-won-before” tracks off his list. He finally tasted sweet victory at both Martinsville and Kansas. Two tracks remain on his list of places where he has never won a Cup Series event – Pocono and, in spite of all of his success in the lower series at the sport’s home track, Charlotte. Perhaps 2017 will be the year he crosses both of these off his list. Kyle’s list of accomplishments in the 2016 season also included 17 top-5 finishes and 25 top-10s.

The new season brings both a new title sponsor (welcome Monster Energy, everyone) and a new points structure, complete with races containing multiple stages. With all of the changes to the point structure that NASCAR made in the offseason, it is hard to predict how any of the drivers will fare until we see some racing under this new scoring format. That said, Kyle is still Kyle. I believe this new point structure could play right into Kyle’s “I wanna go fast”, a.k.a. “Rowdy” attitude and, thus, have him near the top of the points all season long. The flip side of this, however, is the inability to replace body panels on a car that takes damage in a wreck. While it doesn’t happen often, some drivers, Kyle included, have been able to take their cars to the garage for repairs in previous years, get everything fixed up, and then return to the race track to salvage at least a respectable finish and the points that go with it. Under the new format, these kinds of repairs are no longer permitted. It will be interesting to see how that affects the field over the course of the season.

We are still waiting on the official pit crew roster for this season. However, this OFR has not heard word of any changes on the #18 over-the-wall crew. If this is, in fact, the case, Kyle will be in extremely capable veteran crew hands. Latest information as of this writing has these over-the-wall men returning: Brad Donaghy – front carrier, Josh Leslie – front changer, T.J. Ford – jack man, Tom Lampe – gas man, Kenny Barber – rear carrier, and Jake Seminara – rear changer. I fully expect this crew to pick up right where it left off at Homestead with plenty of speed and strength. Most of these guys have been together with Kyle since Kyle joined JGR in 2008 and the chemistry shows in their precision. This crew hardly missed a beat, even with T.J. Ford taking over for long-time (and newly-retired) Jeff Fender in the critical jack man position at the start of the 2016 campaign. They work together extremely well.

Kyle’s spotter, Tony Hirschman, once again returns as Kyle’s “eyes in the sky”. Tony comes from a family of racers and is arguably one of the best on the spotters’ stand week after week. Adam Stevens continues in the crew chief role and will be making the calls on top of the box. Adam, having added another year in the series to his resume, is continuing to grow in confidence and leads the team well, even under the most stressful of circumstances. His leadership and guidance are invaluable to Kyle and the entire #18 Joe Gibbs Racing team.

I will once again be on hand at three of the race tracks personally for a total of 6 Cup races and their associated lower series events – Las Vegas, Charlotte (May & October), and Michigan (June & August). I enter my eighth year of doing my “cookie girl” duties (don’t know the cookie story? Check out my “about me” for the short version) and hope to see this #18 team of mine celebrating in Victory Lane multiple times. I am also proud to say that I have been granted the opportunity to be the first of our OFR writers to represent NASCARFemale as a recognized member of the media for the Las Vegas race weekend. I look forward to putting my best foot forward to both represent our site well and bring you, fellow members of Rowdy Nation, some unique behind-the-scenes coverage of our driver and his amazing team.

To keep up with Kyle (or whoever your favorite may be), follow me and the rest of the writers here at NASCARFemale as we bring you the stories of the 2017 season from the drop of the green flag in Daytona till they throw the checkers at Homestead. Once again, I offer a hearty NASCARFemale welcome to Monster Energy in their new role as the title sponsor of the “Monster Energy Cup Series”. Sit back, buckle up, and enjoy the ride.